Abby David has been swimming competitively for about eight years, but she feels like she’s been in the pool her whole life.

“When I was younger, I swam for the Country Club in Rancho, and then moved to a competitive team in Green Valley called SASO,” David said. “I’ve been swimming for AHS since my freshman year.” SASO stands for Solano Aquatic Sea Otters, a local club team.

Freestyle and the butterfly tend to be David’s strongest strokes, although she still has some struggles with the breast stroke, but that hasn’t impacted her success.

In her freshman year, David qualified for sections, and in her sophomore and junior years she qualified for state championships. She didn’t have that opportunity during her senior year because of COVID-19’s Shelter-at-Home order. ‘’It’s disappointing to be honest,” she said. “I could have been an athlete with eight All-League titles since freshman year, but it’s okay. There’s always the future to look forward to and new goals to reach.”

Her older brother and sister were both in Water Polo, but didn’t really do anything with it. David blew them both out of the water with her dedication. There used to a board up on the pool deck with a bunch of old records and she’s pretty sure she broke a handful. “I do not participate in any other sports just because I do swim year round so I don’t have time to do any other sports,” David said.

“My most memorable meet was probably sophomore year sections at finals when I qualified for states. It was the 100-yard freestyle and I was in the last lane. When I finished, I looked up at the board and realized that I got the automatic cut which automatically puts me into the state meet… I started screaming and almost cried. It was a really good meet.’’

She explained that time management is the key and that “extracurriculars really prepare you to be responsible for your future… I am continuing my swimming and academic career at California State University East Bay on a scholarship.’’ She plans to study kinesiology there and eventually get a Masters in Physical Therapy. “I’m fortunate enough to be able to continue my swimming career in college and so I have that to look forward to,’ she said.